by Kennedy Fox
I frown, remembering that exact day. A couple of months later, I started dating Isaac.
“Well, you would’ve saved me from wasting four years of my life.” I chuckle. “Though I’ve wondered the same. I always felt so special when you pulled me close.” He tugs me to him and smiles. “I still do.”
Once the cake’s been cut and everyone’s on their way to tipsy town, Ethan and I get ready to make our formal exit. Tonight, we’re staying in the B&B honeymooner’s suite. The bridesmaids get everyone to form a line to blow bubbles. We stop every few steps and kiss as they cheer for us.
“Yeah, someone’s gettin’ laid tonight!” Grayson shouts, grabbing our attention, and I immediately shriek when he starts spraying something. Once I realize it’s Silly String, I burst out laughing.
“You idiot!” Kenzie marches over, fighting for the can.
“Remind me to tell you the conversation I overheard,” I whisper to Ethan before he opens his truck door.
We continue thanking everyone until Ethan helps me up and I’m seated. Once I’m buckled, I roll down the window and wave. My parents come over and kiss me.
“Have fun, you two,” my mom says.
John comes over next and hands over a key. “Room’s all set up for you.”
“Thanks, Uncle John.”
A few minutes later, we’re driving off. I watch in the side mirror as our guests go back inside the huge white tent, and I know the party is far from over.
On the way to the B&B, I tell Ethan about Kenzie and Grayson’s conversation from earlier.
“You’re sure it was them?”
“Oh yeah. Definitely.”
“It’s only a matter of time before she announces she’s pregnant with his kid.” He snickers.
“John would flip,” I say.
“Yep.” He laughs.
When we arrive at our suite, my eyes light up in amazement. “Oh my God, it’s beautiful.” There are flowers and snacks laid out. Though I wish I could drink with him, I’m good with sparkling apple cider.
“First step, get you out of that dress so I don’t rip it.” Ethan brushes his fingers over my bare shoulder, and I shiver.
I’m just as eager to get out of it. Though I loved how it looked on me, it’s not the most comfortable thing to wear.
“Holy hell, woman…” Ethan gasps as he notices what I’m wearing underneath.
“Oh, guess I did get you a little somethin’…” I taunt. He licks his lips as he focuses on my white thong and garter belt. The bra is strapless but just as sexy and lacy. “You like?”
“Fuckin’ love.” Our mouths crash together as he gently holds me to his body. “I can’t wait to devour you all night long…”
I slide my hands over his jacket and help him out of his tux. It’s a rental, so it needs to be returned in decent shape. Though I’ve seen Ethan naked every day since we became a thing, I’ll never get tired of seeing his chiseled muscles and abs. His biceps flex, and the teenage girl inside me drools over how sexy they are.
“This is one hot view I’ll never get tired of,” I murmur, scratching my nails down his chest.
“I could say the same about you…” He winks, lowering his eyes over my belly. “Think I’ll keep you knocked up. Makin’ me pretty damn hard.”
“I agreed to two, so don’t get any ideas,” I tease.
“Total? I thought you meant two a year.”
I playfully smack him. “That’s not even possible unless it’s twins. So nice try.”
“We’ll see.” He brings our lips together as we make our way to the bed. “We need to try out the deep tub later.”
“That sounds like heaven,” I say as he sucks on my neck.
Soon, we’re naked, and our legs are tangled in the sheets. Being able to say we’re husband and wife gives me butterflies. I still can’t believe it. Once we’re breathless and orgasmed out, we make our way to the bath.
“Are you happy?” he whispers in my ear as I sit between his legs in the water.
“Very much,” I hum, my head falling back against his chest. “I think my heart might burst.”
He smiles, kissing the tip of my nose. “You and me, love. Forever.”
I beam at the words he said to me our first official night together as a couple. I’ll never forget what he said and get so damn giddy any time he repeats it.
When I fall asleep in my husband’s arms that night, I feel a contentment I’ve never had before.
It’s blissful.
“Harper? Baby?” I hear Ethan’s soft voice as he softly shakes me.
“Hmm? What time is it?” I ask without opening my eyes.
“It’s a little past six. Gotta go help Grayson, but I’ll be right back.”
I blink, finally focusing on his face in front of me. “Huh? Why?”
The corner of his lips tilts up as he shakes his head. “Apparently, he’s tied to the bed and can’t break free.”
My brows furrow as I wonder if I heard him correctly. “Did you just say what I think you said?”
“Yeah, I’m gonna give him so much shit about this.” He moves to get dressed. We brought our suitcases with extra clothes here the night before the wedding.
“Who tied him up?”
“Take a guess…”
“No way.” My eyes widen. “Kenzie?”
“Yep, they went back to his place last night, and when he woke up, she had secured his arms and legs to the bedposts with rope.”
“Oh my God.” I burst out laughing. “Guess she got her revenge…”
Ethan shakes his head. “He said no one else picked up his call, but since I’m still on ranch hours, I just so happened to wake up and saw my phone screen light up. Bastard’s lucky.”
“Wait, how’d he call you if he can’t move?”
“That’s the best part. He had to ask his Alexa to call me.”
“Oh man. I kinda feel bad for him. How humiliating.”
“Yeah, considering he’s buck ass naked.” Ethan grabs his keys, then leans down for a kiss. “I’ll bring breakfast up when I’m back. Love you.”
“Love you too. Be nice to him…” I warn.
He shoots me a wicked grin. “We’ll see.”
Epilogue
ETHAN
FIVE MONTHS LATER
“Go harder,” Harper begs as she’s bent over in front of me. At nine months pregnant, we’ve had to come up with different and safer positions. I’m still nervous about hurting her or the baby, so she often has to reassure me I won’t. “It’s okay, babe. It feels amazing,” she adds as I hesitate.
At her request, I open her ass cheeks wider and thrust with power. She cries out, fisting the covers as she keeps her hips up. It’s the only way not to put pressure on her belly but gives me perfect access to her pussy. I wrap an arm around her waist and thumb her clit. She nearly shoots off the bed, but I hold her in place with my other hand.
Since we have to be out of the house in a half hour, it has to be a quickie. Something we’ve become accustomed to between our work schedules and getting ready for the baby. However, since her doctor suggested sex as a way to induce labor, she’s been using me for her own personal sex machine.
Not that I’m complaining.
“Jesus. You’re cl—” Before I can even finish the words, she’s squirting on my cock and writhing underneath me. I hold her up as she shakes and squirms. “Fuck yes, love. That’s my girl.”
I wait until she catches her breath to finish. Squeezing her hips, I continue thrusting until my body unravels and I fill her sweet pussy.
“If that doesn’t get this baby out, I’m reaching in and yanking him out.” She rolls over before collapsing on the bed.
I kneel between her legs and lean down to kiss her. “He will come when he’s ready.”
She scowls. “What about when I’m ready? I’m hot, fat, and miserable. Plus, I wanna hold him already.”
“You’re beautiful and sexy as sin. But if we’re gonna make this event, we
gotta get ready to go soon.” I hold out my hand and help her up.
“I’m excited.” She smiles. “Should be fun to see all the bachelors get bid on.”
I snort, walking around to find my clothes and a towel. “I doubt they feel the same.”
She shrugs, taking the towel from me. “Maybe Kenzie will finally bid on Grayson this year.”
“Hmm, I don’t know. After the way she tied him up and left him, he’s pretty bitter,” I say.
“That was months ago, though,” I point out. Granted, I’m not around them that much anymore, so they might still be fighting.
“Doesn’t matter. They’ve been in a war for ages,” I explain.
“True, but who knows. There’s not much to pick from. Most are ranch hands or her cousins.”
“Is Hadleigh coming?”
“Yep, her and Ivy,” she tells me.
“Think she’ll bid on one of the twins?” I ask with amusement.
“No idea. She couldn’t get off work the past couple of years for the auction, so who knows. Kaitlyn said she wanted to bid, but of course her brothers forbade it.”
Chuckling, I finish getting dressed and put on my bracelet and watch. “Of course they did, but that don't mean shit. She’s old enough to make her own decisions.”
“She’ll always be the baby of the family, though. She hates it.” Harper grins. “I think that’s why she likes Ivy being around. Doesn’t make her feel like the youngest anymore.”
Harper stands by me once she’s in her cute sundress. I look down and put my hand on her bump. “I love that our kid is gonna grow up on the ranch with a bunch of cousins and family around.”
She covers my hand with hers. “Me too.”
“Can’t wait for the house to be finished so we can move in. Hell, all the baby furniture is already taking over.” I glance around at the small space.
“Me too! Only a few more weeks and it’ll be ready. The cabin’s cute and cozy for now,” she reminds me, and I think I’m more anxious than she is.
I wrap her in my arms and kiss her forehead. “Especially if we’re going to try for number two right away.”
“Whoa, Cowboy. Calm down. Let me get through one labor first.”
“Hey, you’re the one who kissed me first when we became official. You wanted me,” I gloat, waggling my brows.
She groans, shaking her head. “You’re full of yourself.”
“Hey, kissing me is what got us here so…”
“Mm-hmm. Not just kissing.”
I chuckle. “So, hypothetically, if you get pregnant with twins next, we’d end up with three. That means we’d have to try for a fourth to keep it even.”
She rolls her eyes. “Nice try, but no.”
“I’m just sayin’. Twins run in the family.”
“I’ve noticed.”
Just as I’m about to suggest we get going, Harper’s face distorts as her brows pinch together. She puts a hand on her lower back and makes a noise.
“You alright?”
“I think that was a contraction…but like a big one.”
“Is it time?” I ask in a panic, unsure of what to do. Though we’ve talked about the birth plan excessively, I’m still nervous.
“It’s probably Braxton Hicks. I felt some earlier too.” She blows out a breath as if the pain dissolved. “Yeah, I’m pretty—”
We both look down when we feel liquid at our bare feet. It’s not a lot, but it’s enough to know it’s not just Braxton Hicks.
“Is that your…did your water break?”
“I think it is! I read that it can leak out slowly. It’s not always a gush.”
“Well, shit. Let’s go to the hospital then.” My heart races in both anxiousness and excitement.
“Can you bring a couple of towels? And my bag!”
I help Harper into the truck after covering the seat with a towel. Once we have everything, I jump in the driver’s seat, and we head toward the hospital. She calls her doctor and tells her we’re on the way.
Leaning over, I take her hand in mine and squeeze. “We’re gonna have a baby today.”
“I can’t believe it.” Her eyes tear up. “So excited to meet him.”
“Me too, love.”
HARPER
After six hours of labor, Hayden Scott Bishop was born.
A full head of dark hair and pure perfection.
I’ve never been more grateful for modern medicine than I was today. As soon as the contractions came every couple of minutes, I got an epidural. I only pushed for thirty minutes before he was here. Grateful and blessed are an understatement.
On our way to the hospital, Ethan called his parents, and I called mine. Then I sent out a mass text to everyone else to let them know since most of them would be at the bachelor’s auction anyway. Though I’m sad I missed the event, it’s nothing compared to holding my son for the first time.
“He looks so much like you,” Ethan says, standing next to me.
“He’s got my dark hair, but he’s definitely got all the Bishop features.” I rub my finger over his soft cheek.
“So proud of you, babe. You made it look so easy.”
“Well, let me reassure you, it wasn’t.” I snort.
Ethan leans down and kisses Hayden’s head. “He’s eating so good.”
“I can’t believe he latched right on. Hopefully, he continues because I’ve been warned. Mostly by your mother.” I chuckle. With her being a doctor, she was my pregnancy bible through all of this.
“Speaking of which, they’re on their way up. Even though I told her visiting hours were over, she said they didn’t apply to the grandmother.”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” I laugh. Considering she works here, she’ll probably have no problem getting in.
After spending two days in the hospital, I’m relieved to finally be home and in my own bed. I told Hadleigh she could come over since she could only drop in for a few minutes on her breaks the next day.
“I brought goodies,” she sing-songs as she struts into my bedroom. “Now gimme the baby.”
“Nice to see you too,” I mock dryly.
“Sorry, mama.” She gives me a hug. “You look good. How ya feelin’?”
“Like I birthed a watermelon.” I look down at Hayden and smile as I wrap him like a burrito. “So worth it, though,” I say in a high-pitched baby voice.
“Yeah, that sensation will go away…eventually. Just keep spraying your hoo-hah with the numbing spray.”
Ethan covers his junk. “Thank God I’m a guy.”
“Pfft. Men could never,” Hadleigh says.
I chuckle. “Alright, he’s all ready for you.”
Hadleigh picks him up, then sits back on the bed.
“So tell me what I missed at the bachelor’s auction,” I say.
“Oh my God. So much dirt.”
“Yeah, I hear you bid on both Knox and Kane?” I raise my brows.
“Yep, but some bitch outbid me on Kane, and after spending two-fifty on Knox, I didn’t have enough cash on me to keep going. Kane’s pissed.” She shrugs as if she’s not that bothered by it. “I tried, though.”
“So when are you and Knox going on your date?”
“Probably never. Between my work schedule and his, we’ll never have the same night off.”
“Then why’d you bid on him?”
“Because I didn’t want to make either of them feel bad if I didn’t. What other choice did I have? Plus, Kane will be fine. Some chick named Sarah won.” She rubs her nose against Hayden’s and makes baby coo noises at him.
“Sarah who?”
“Cooke, I think? I think she graduated a year before I entered high school, so it’s weird she’d bid on a younger guy.”
“Sarah Cooke? Oh shit.” Ethan shakes his head, smirking.
“Who’s she?” Hadleigh and I ask at the same time.
“Some chick Maize went to school with and hates. Long story, but either way, I imagine that had all the Bishop
girls talkin’,” Ethan explains.
“Oh well, not as much as when Kenzie bid on and won Grayson,” Hadleigh says.
“No way! She did?” My eyes widen in shock because no one has mentioned it. After Kenzie tied him up the night of our wedding, they’re still at war with each other.
“Yeah actually, she and that Sarah chick ended up in a bidding war. I think it went to three hundred before Kenzie threatened to shove the paddle down her throat.”
I burst out laughing. “That’s something I could see her saying.”
“Probably why Sarah went so hard to win Kane because she lost Grayson.” Hadleigh shrugs.
Though she plays it off as if it’s no big deal, I’m not buying it. She’s more bothered about Kane going on a date with this girl than she’s showing.
Hadleigh and I visit for an hour before she leaves. Luckily, I’ll have Ivy to help with the business while I’m on maternity leave. Hadleigh and Kaitlyn volunteered to take a few shifts if I’m really backed up. My mom said she’ll pitch in and help package too. It’s a relief to actually get this time to spend with Ethan and Hayden without worrying about the shop.
“Our first night as a family of three. What do you wanna do?” Ethan lies next to me as I feed Hayden.
“Honestly, lying in bed, watching a movie, and eating dinner like old times sounds like heaven.”
He cups my cheek and softly kisses me. “You’ve got it, love. Grandma and Maize made us several casseroles. I’ll pop one in the oven, then we can find something to watch.”
After five minutes, I double tap my bracelet, and seconds later, Ethan returns.
“Everything okay?”
I beam at the most amazing man and nod. “Everything’s perfect.”
Continue the Circle B Ranch series with Grayson & Kenzie’s story next in Winning the Cowboy
If you haven’t started at the beginning, make sure to read Riley and Zoey’s story in Hitching the Cowboy, Diesel and Rowan’s story in Catching the Cowboy, Gavin and Maize’s story in Wrangling the Cowboy, and Elle and Connor’s story in Bossing the Cowboy.